A Quick Overview of
Accessible Course Materials
Elizabeth Tu
Center for Faculty Development
http://www.sjsu.edu/cfd/teachinglearning/accessibility
Videos of Different Learning
Styles
 Videos of how students with disabilities learn:
 Gloria A’s story for tips on accessible documents:
http://teachingcommons.cdl.edu/access/materials/Glo
riaA_Story.shtml
 Lana’s story for tips on accessible slides:
http://teachingcommons.cdl.edu/access/materials/Lan
aStory.shtml
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Who are Our Students?
 Educational, does one size fit all?
 Individuals bring in different skills, culture, learning style,
needs, interests, and other characteristics to learning.
 "Diversity" in our student population is more than cultural; it
includes a wide range of physical, visual [sensory], hearing,
learning [cognitive], attention, and communication abilities.
 Courses or presentations designed with Universal Design for
Learning (UDL) “strive to focus on the strength of
individuals… what they CAN do rather than on what they
cannot” and “proactively address the needs of people with the
broadest range of characteristics…” (Emmert, M. A. 2008)
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SJSU AEC Student Distribution
AEC Spring 2014 student
registration data
 Communication = 6 (.52%)
 Deaf/HOH = 29 (2.54%)
 Learning disability = 447
(39.11%)
 Mobility = 95 (8.31%)
 Functional disability = 548
(47.94%)
 Visual disability = 18
(1.57%)
Total = 1143
Spring 2014
Visual
1.57%
Functional
Disability
47.94%
Communication
0.52%
HOH
2.54%
Learning
Disability
39.11%
Mobility
8.31%
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Complaints over Inaccessibility
7 complaints from disable students at University of Montana over
inaccessible online courses:
1. Inaccessible live chat and discussion board in Moodle LMS
2. Inaccessible faculty-prepared class assignments and materials on
the learning management system, Moodle.
3. Inaccessible documents that are scanned images on webpages
and websites.
4. Inaccessible videos, and videos in Flash format, that are not
captioned.
5. Inaccessible library database materials.
6. Inaccessible course registration through a website, Cyber Bear.
7. Inaccessible classroom clickers.
Note: For more information about the 7 complaints, visit http://goo.gl/FlZjB
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Settlement Agreement over
Inaccessibility, May 2013
UC Berkeley’s Settlement Agreement with Students with Print Disabilities on
May 7, 2013:
 Timely access to instructional materials with accessible alternate media
format



Textbooks: 10 business days
Course readers: 17 business days
Request for timely delivery of alternate format: 3 days prior to start of class
 Improve library online catalog software for screen reader access
 Implement scanning machines or other assistive technology to allow selfservice by students
 Provide assistance with scanning for those with physical disabilities
 Faculty may be subject to referral to the Vice Provost and reference the
Faculty Code of Conduct if they refuse to submit textbook adoptions at
least 7 weeks prior to start of class
 Reading materials posted by the faculty and staff will be made accessible
in a reasonable and equitable time frame.
Note: For more information about this UC Berkeley’s Settlement Agreement, visit
http://goo.gl/P6L56
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Settlement Agreement over
Inaccessibility, July 2013
Louisiana Tech University’s Settlement Agreement on July 23, 2013:
Synopsis
 A blind student was unable to participate in a course due to an
inaccessible online learning product (MyOMLab) and hard copy
classroom handouts
 Faculty member directed student to app vendor and assigned another
student in the course to convert the handouts
 Campus failed to provide equal and timely access to the course materials
within one month
 Student dropped the course due to inability to participate equally in the
class discussion or prepare for the exams in a timely manner
Outcomes
 Policy Related


Affirm the role of Disability Services (DS) Office as the authorized liaison between
students and faculty and DS to coordinate with instructors on the delivery and service of
course accommodations
University will revise and adopt policies and procedures to comply with accessibility
standards and disseminate appropriately within 120 days
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Settlement Agreement over
Inaccessibility, July 2013 (cont.)
Louisiana Tech University’s Settlement Agreement on July 23, 2013
(cont.):
 Training Related
 All instruction-related individuals [faculty, TAs, administrators] must receive [ADA]
training on their role and responsibilities, campus resources, best practices
 All student orientation will include presentation by Disability Services office
 Reporting Related
 Report the above faculty and student training dates and attendance
 Submit initial and annual compliance reports concerning this Settlement
Agreement (policy revision, training and related complaints)
Note: For more information about this Louisiana Tech University’s Settlement Agreement,
visit http://www.ada.gov/louisiana-tech.htm
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What is an accessible document?
 Accessible documents are digital documents
which can be
 modified by highlighting texts, increasing the font
size, or,
 read out loud by text reader software for users
with disabilities.
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Is My Document Accessible?
 The 2-Minute PDF Quick-Check
 Use accessible syllabus template
 Follow accessibility guidelines in creating Word or
PowerPoint slides:




Structure
Links
Images
Table/Chart
For more information, visit CFD accessible
documents page at http://www.sjsu.edu/cfd/teachinglearning/accessibility/accessible-documents
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Demo
 How to read a PDF document
 How to convert a scanned image pdf file into an
accessible document
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Are My Course Materials Accessible?
1.
Have I submitted my textbooks order or course readers through
Faculty Resources at SJSU Bookstore ?
2.
Have I submitted library reserve materials, if any, through course
reserves list?
3.
Use accessible syllabus for your course.
4.
Follow accessibility guidelines to your create course documents,
handouts, or slides.
5.
Do my video course materials include captions and audio course
materials include transcript? View captioning guidelines for details or
complete this request form to request for help.
6.
Are my quizzes, examinations or assessment materials accessible?
Contact Accessible Education Center (AEC) Testing Accommodations
at http://www.sjsu.edu/aec for help.
7.
Are my websites and URLs accessible? Use this tool to verify. Are all
materials uploaded on my website or Canvas learning management
system accessible?
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References and
Point of Contact
Useful References:
 Accessible syllabus template at
http://www.sjsu.edu/cfd/docs/accessible%20syllabus
%20template.doc
 Accessible course materials at
http://www.sjsu.edu/cfd/teaching-learning/accessibility
 Captioning at http://www.sjsu.edu/cfd/teachinglearning/accessibility/captioning for accessible videos
 Accessible websites or URLs at
http://www.contentquality.com/
Elizabeth Tu, 408.924.3093
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